DA's Staff Recognizes Those Who Served
At the Bucks County District Attorney's Office we are thankful for the service of every veteran. The men below are ours.
So as the nation spends a few days this November honoring the countless men and women who have sacrificed in the service of our country, we at the DA's Office have decided to share the stories of those closest to us. These are the brave husbands, sons and fathers, brothers, grandfathers and uncles who have shaped the staff of our office. For that, we owe these men much.
Since the conclusion of their service, some of these men have passed and others remain with us. But we all had the luck enough to see them come home where we could learn from their example. We hope you'll take a few minutes to scroll through and get to know them too.
John J. Foden III has spent that last 30-plus years serving his country. He joined the Air Force from 1986, deployed to Iraq in 2005 and remained on active duty until 2011 when he retired as a lieutenant colonel. He is currently in civil service, stationed in Newport News, Virginia. His daughter Aubrie Foden, who works in the DA’s Office as its tech support guru, says he considers Chalfont his “home away from home.”
Father and son Barton Josefowicz Jr. and Barton Josefowicz III, shown together on N. Main Street in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, overlapped in their service with the Air Force. Barton Jr., who joined in 1983, deployed to Iraq in the 1990s and later returned in the early 2000s. He remained in the reserves until 2013. Barton III, husband of Assistant District Attorney Sarah Heimbach, served on active duty from 2000 to 2004, with deployments to Saudi Arabia, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Jordan and Iraq.
Frank Szutar (second photo), Sarah’s grandfather, served in the Navy from 1954 to 1987.
John “Jack” Haggerty, pictured with his wife Mary Haggerty, joined the Navy in 1945 and later joined up with the Marine Corp in 1948 where he rose to the rank of sergeant major. As a Marine, he served as a gunner in the Korean War. John remained a reservist until 1968. Though he lived in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, two of John’s three daughters went on to become Bucks County residents, including the mother of Deputy District Attorney Chelsey Jackman. John died in 1989.
George Lee Jackson Jr., Korean War veteran, served in the Navy from 1950 until 1958, with his final dock at the Naval Shipyard in Philadelphia. His daughter, Roberta A. Jackson, works on the DA’s Office support staff. George is pictured with his wife. His brother Robert Allen Jackson, not pictured, served in the Vietnam War.
Roberta’s brother George Lee Jackson III (second photo) served in the Air Force from 1971 to 1996, and re-enlisted in 2006. Carlton Antonio Jackson served from about 1978 to 1985 in an airborne division of the Army.
Before he came to the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office, Deputy District Attorney Robert D. James served in the Air Force from 1988 to 1995. A staff sergeant during the Gulf War, Bob served in both operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. He is currently in charge of the Crash Investigation Unit at the DA’s Office as well as the office’s Veterans Court program.
Joseph John Kohler enlisted in the Navy on his 17th birthday and soon found himself stationed at the Panama Canal where he helped repair and update Navy ships as they passed through. In 1944, he was assigned to a destroyer in the Pacific theater where he remained until the end of World War II serving as an electrical technician. He was the paternal grandfather of Deputy District Attorney Kate Kohler.
William Paul Koller, Kate’s maternal grandfather, also served in the Navy from 1942 to 1946, station in China. There he worked on a ship as an x-ray technician tending to the injured. He achieved the rank of ensign. William is pictured with his wife Peggy Koller.
Forrest E. Jackman, a staff sergeant in the Marine Corp, served during the Korean War. He fought at the Battle of Chosin Reservoir and received both a Silver Star and a Purple Heart. His daughter Diane Kurman keeps finances in order at the DA’s Office. Forrest died in 2008 at 78.
Brothers William and Joseph Dupak each enlisted to separate branches. William, now 57, joined the Marine Corp in 1980 and remained on active duty until 1984. Joseph, now 50, joined the Army in 1989 and served until 1993. He served as an MP during Operation Desert Storm. Their nephew, Jim O’Malley, handles communications for the DA’s Office. They both reside in Northeastern Pennsylvania.
Robert Beauregard served during WWII in the Army’s 8th Armored Division, where he achieved the rank of sergeant. For rescuing a wounded infantryman on Feb. 28, 1945, during battle in Germany, he was awarded the Bronze Star. Robert’s daughter Gail Perrault works on the support staff at the District Attorney’s Office. He died in 1999.
Bernard McNulty, shown kneeling alongside a friend, served as a sergeant in the Army from 1944 to 1946, and was deployed to the Aleutian Islands during WWII. His daughter, Pat Polak, works on the support staff at the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office. Bernard died in 1998.
Gary Thomas Polak, Pat’s husband (second photo), served in the Air Force from 1969 to 1972. As a staff sergeant, he was stationed at Maguire Air Force Base. Gary has been a Doylestown resident for more than 70 years.
William E. Brown was an Army mortarman in the Pacific Theater of World War II. He served as a Technician 4th Grade with the 25th Infantry Division, also known as Tropic Lightning. William’s service earned him two Bronze Stars. He occasionally regaled his grandson, Deputy District Attorney Christopher Rees, with stories of watching from a beach with General Douglas MacArthur as the Enola Gay took flight. William died in 2015 at 91.
Bill Juba served as Military Police in the Army from 1959 to 1962, and attained the rank of Specialist 4th Class. He was stationed at various bases along the east coast of the United States before eventually he was sent to Massweiler, Germany. From there, he traveled throughout Europe, guarding ordnance strewn about the continent in the aftermath of WWII. The Berlin Wall crisis extended his deployment to Europe by three months. The father-in-law of District Attorney Matthew Weintraub, Bill lives in Warminster.
Brothers Albin, Paul and Alfred Zielinski, all of Bucks County, served their country in separate branches. Alfred, 87, and Paul, 90, are Army veterans who served in the Korean War. Alfred’s twin brother Albin served in the Marine Corp. He died in 2014. Alfred’s son, Mark Zielinski, is a county detective.
Created Nov 10, 2018 @ 4:52 PM | Updated Nov 11, 2018 @ 9:35 AM
